No Obstacles to Kiev-Tehran Strategic Ties: Envoy

Ukraine’s ambassador to Iran underlined his country’s willingness to enhance bilateral collaborations with the Islamic Republic, stressing that there are no barriers to establishment of bilateral strategic ties.

Addressing a forum in Tehran on 25 years of interaction between the two countries, Sergey Burdilyak described Ukraine as “Iran’s friend in Europe”.

He said Kiev attaches significance to its ties with Tehran, stressing that no third party can affect the relations.

The two countries face no obstacles to developing their ties to the strategic level, Burdilyak said.

“We are ready to welcome Iranian officials at any level in Ukraine,” he stated.

The envoy further highlighted his country’s capacities in different fields as ship-building and aerospace industries and said Ukraine can help Iran in aerospace industries while the Islamic Republic can guarantee Ukraine’s energy security.

Last month, Iran’s ambassador to Ukraine also highlighted the ample opportunities available for enhanced cooperation between the two countries.

Speaking at an economic meeting in Iran’s northern city of Rasht on January 4, Mohammad Beheshti Monfared called on Iranian merchants and business people not to lose the opportunity to work on some 300 projects that the Ukrainian government is handing over to the private sector.

Making a reference to Ukraine’s advanced agricultural machinery, fertile soil, high precipitation levels and low-cost labor, the ambassador highlighted the good grounds for extraterritorial agriculture in Europe’s second largest country with a population of 46 million people.

In March 2016, Tehran and Kiev inked a memorandum of understating for the expansion of economic cooperation in various fields.

In May that year, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said there are good opportunities for closer trade interaction between Iranian and Ukrainian companies in a broad range of fields, including higher education, scientific and technological issues, energy, power plant equipment, renewable energies, agriculture, cultural programs and tourism.